ACA opens file for Yong

Anti-Corruption Agency (ACA) will be investigating Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) president Datuk Yong Teck Lee of corruption involving RM5 million allegedly committed while he was Sabah Chief Minister.

ACA Director General Datuk Seri Ahmad Said Hamdan said investigation would be based on evidence adduced by a witness at the graft trial of former Federal Minister Tan Sri Kasitah Gadam in a High Court Kuala Lumpur yesterday (June 19).

The story was widely published in all the newspapers today.

Ahmad said Yong would be called to give his statement soon.

Meanwhile, Yong questioned ACA motive in its renewd interest in the case which happened about 12 years ago. He said he had given statement for hours to the ACA on the matter.

"The timing is perfect," he said.


Reproduced below is the story from here in which the ACA DG was referring.

Kasitah corruption trial: 'Yong ordered RM5 million paid to his agents'

KUALA LUMPUR: Sabah Progressive Party president Datuk Seri Yong Teck Lee had ordered the payment of over RM5 million profit from the sale of shares belonging to a state-owned company to his selected agents in 1996, the High Court heard yesterday.

Former director of Briskmark Enterprise Sdn Bhd, Datuk Wasli Mohd Said, said that when he was general manager of the Sabah Land Development Board (SLDB), he met Yong, who was then the chief minister, at his office to brief him about the proposed management buyout of 40 per cent shares in Sapi Plantation owned by SLDB.

Wasli said his lawyer, William Cheah, mooted the idea of setting up the company (Briskmark) as a vehicle for political funding and had asked him to brief the chief minister regarding the matter.

"I briefed the chief minister and told him about the profit arising from the listing exercise involving Sapi shares into PPB Oil Palms."

He said that after the first meeting, he met Yong several times, not only at his office but at other places, where the former chief minister instructed him that part of the profit from the sale of shares was to be paid to his selected agents.

During examination-in-chief by deputy public prosecutor Mohamad Hanafiah Zakaria, Wasli said Yong would contact him on his handphone to say when and where the payment was to be made as well as to give the registration number of the agent's car.

Wasli was testifying at the trial of former land and cooperative development minister Tan Sri Kasitah Gaddam, who is alleged to have used his position as SLDB chairman for financial gain by taking part in the decision to approve the proposed sale of 16.8 million Sapi shares held by SLDB to Briskmark.

Kasitah, 60, is also alleged to have deceived SLDB by omitting to disclose the offer by PPB Oil Palms to allocate five shares for each Sapi share in its proposed listing exercise.

When questioned further, Wasli said one of the payments to Yong's agents was made just before the 1999 general election.

He added that besides Yong, he paid RM500,000 to each of eight board members of Briskmark as a donation. The board members were Datuk Salleh Otik, Datuk Ismail Jook, Abdul Kader Pateh, Laimun Laikim, Michael Emban, Talib Aning, John Liaw and Catherine Yong.

Wasli said he did not receive receipts for the payments to Yong's agents and the others.

Replying to another question, Wasli said most of the letters to the minister in charge of SLDB (Datuk Joseph Kurup - now Tan Sri), former chief minister and SLDB were drafted by his lawyer and he just signed them. Bernama